After a two-year renovation, the nation’s oldest zoo yesterday reopened with a new layout that it said brings visitors and animals closer than before.
Built in 1936, the Hsinchu Zoo overhauled its aging infrastructure with a no-cage approach to better protect and manage its animals in five areas, where they are separated from the public by moats or bushes and fences no taller than 120cm, allowing people to observe them at a closer distance without disturbing them, the city government said.
Visitors would be able to view all the animals, including orangutans and Bengal tigers, up close, it said, adding that common eland antelopes would be visible from the canteen area.
Photo: Hung Mei-hsiuh, Taipei Times
“Seeing the zoo become a center of tourism again has always been a dream of mine, and now I have seen that dream fulfilled,” Hsinchu Mayor Lin Chih-chien (林智堅) said.
Lin, whose mayoral campaign platform last year centered on renovating the zoo, presided over the reopening with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
He said that he hoped the zoo would usher in a new period of prosperity for the city.
The zoo has also reduced the number of animals it cares for, from 70 species to 44, to make sure each group has ample space, zoo director Yang Chia-min (楊家民) said.
Most of the other species, which were released to the wild or relocated to other facilities, were birds, Yang said, adding that one of the old bird cages was turned into an art installation that visitors would walk through when entering the zoo.
The installation was designed to help visitors experience a caged animal’s perspective and inspire them to think differently about nature, he said.
The city government said that it has retained nearly 80 percent of the plants it had before the renovation, as well as familiar structures, such as a fountain and an entryway inspired by the former main entrance at the Tierpark Hagenbeck in Hamburg, Germany.
The Hsinchu zoo also kept the pen of an elephant that was gifted to the zoo, the city government said, adding that its preserved bones would be displayed in the building, along with historic photographs of the zoo.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS